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Talk:SorryNotSorry/@comment-3575890-20160516210100
In light of recent events, I'm reposting my Dany essay in celebration of my queen because 1) she's getting too much backlash lately, 2) she's more badass than ever, 3) she deserves all the love. Maybe one day I'll even write a new one for her, but for now, this is the best I can express the unfathomable degree that I love her so fucking much. '''She is so much more than a fictitious character. She is my SPIRIT ANIMAL - I mean, obviously I may not be an all-powerful indestructible sovereign with fire-breathing dragons and a mass army in my arsenal, but I have honestly never related to any character of any piece of fiction more than I relate to her in other aspects. She is the walking, talking personification of everything I believe in and stand for. She's a beacon of hope, inspiration, empowerment, representation! She's a role model to look up to and aspire to be. She is the representation of a better world and improved world order. She is the physical human embodiment of everything that is right with world. She is just EVERYTHING TO ME, IT PHYSICALLY ACHES! '''Daenerys Targaryen In a show widely acclaimed for its complexly layered characters encompassing various spectrums of the human psyche, and the capacity for the furthermost darkest depths of the human condition, Daenerys isn’t actually so complex in that sense. By this, I do not mean she lacks depth, as there is no shortage of dimensional intricacy and nuance to her character. Daenerys is without a shadow of a doubt, a complexly written character like all the rest, but in where she deviates from everyone else is a sweet nature characterized by a strong moral stance and a deep understanding of human suffering. Dany is morally grey like all the rest, but it is only because her humility and selflessness often depend upon some morally questionable methods like when she eradicates all of the slave owners in order to free enslaved citizens in Astapor. And otherwise, she holds herself to a strict moral code. Like (almost) every other character on this show, she is working towards the same onerous goal with ardent almost at times ruthless determination, but she will never forsake her moral values in pursuit of that goal. Whereas we see the majority of these characters are deeply conditioned to put self-preservation above the best interest and fundamental rights of others, Daenerys stands out in that she is wired the opposite way. She thrives to bring the Targaryen house back into power by taking the throne back from her usurpers; however, she also honours the rights and freedoms of others and whenever they are breached under her eye, she intervenes to rectify those injustices. She is certainly not shy of blood shed when she is threatened or innocents are in danger, but she will never harm a hair on the head of an innocent nor will she allow innocents to be harmed under her watch no matter if that diligence slows her down or puts her at risk. Now while Daenerys has certainly had some eye-brow raising moments of questionable moral judgment and behavior; overall, despite the many hardships and tribulations she’s suffered in her short life, she retains her purity of heart and strength of integrity. Despite the forcible strength supplemented by exterior aid (ie; cutthroat warriors and scintillating dragons) that she beholds, her compassion, unmatched humanitarianism, ability to sustain a positive and motivating environment for her comrades, and her wish for transcendence for all of humanity, and stemming from that, her influence and inspirational moxie is what truly accounts for the source of her power. She is an all-powerful sovereign, but she does not have the dictator-complex that many other monarchs do and it is why she has so many in her court that love, respect, and believe in her. Because they are guaranteed that in their services to her, they will always be respected and treated justly in return. The inexplicable power she’s accumulated from her former life of abuse and enslavement has not gone to her head nor soiled her soul, but if anything, has strengthened her character and taken her on a most tremendous spiritual journey that has profoundly bettered her in every aspect. She is still the sweet, gentle-hearted soul she has always been, but no longer broken. Truth be told, she’s always been brave and strong though. She just always underestimated herself and her capabilities too much to know it. Even before she discovered the extent of her power, she yearned to fight back, but always recoiled in fear in her belief that her brother harnessed all of the power and she wasn’t formidable, when in actuality, she was the one with dragon’s blood coursing in her veins. She would not learn this until after sixteen years of mental, emotional, physical, and even sexual abuse at his hand, however, and she would not have the incentive to fight back until the first moment she’d bear witness to him laying a violent hand upon another innocent, triggering her protective instincts, and reawakening a white-hot fire she never knew she had in her. Only then from thereon does she take her life into her own hands. She executes her brother for his treachery, she asserts her independence in her relationship with her formerly domineering husband teaching him to respect her with such efficacy that the power scale eventually tips in her direction, and when tragedy strikes and she loses him and her baby, instead of losing her purpose and direction, she finds a new purpose, with the help of her newly birthed dragons, in the goal of restoring her fallen House to its former glory. Instead of falling into an emotionally catatonic state upon losing everything she procured in her marriage to Drogo, including Drogo herself, she takes all of her hardship and turns it into motivation. She translates her pain into good will for herself and others. She travels from nation to nation eradicating every slave owner in her warpath and striking the chains off every slave in her sight. She scoffs at the misogynistic vitriol thrown her way by saying, “Woman? Is that meant to insult me?” - which is her way of acknowledging that being a woman in a male-dominant society, while isn’t without its challenges, does not make her weak as she initially believed herself to be, but twice as strong as any man as the suffrage she has faced and surmounted as a woman speaks for itself - and in a world devoid of women’s rights, this is of paramount importance. She craftily fools a slave owner into surrendering to her an entire slave army under the illusion of gifting him a dragon that she never had any actual intention of giving him, which in the process allows her to walk away unscathed with her three dragons and an army of ten thousand unsullied warriors, that’d readily fall on their own swords for her, in tow. But in her disdain of slavery, she frees these men from their obligation to serve her giving them the option to desert their post or fight for her of their own volition, which earns her their utmost respect, admiration, and motivation to fight for her. From a business standpoint, this was a gamble that posed a great risk to her authority obviously, but in the end was a justified one that enabled her to establish a bond with her warriors that has guaranteed long-term loyalty from them. Daenerys is a wonderful ruler because she wishes to rule for all of the right reasons. She ascribes to a philosophy that she would rather be loved and respected than feared as a leader and strongly advocates freedom of choice. She does not believe herself to be above or better than her warriors, advisors, dragons, and people, but rather is fighting for a system that recognizes everyone as persons of equal worth. She doesn’t care about the power – not really. The true driving force behind her motivation to rule is her will to protect the agency of those without a voice. Many people would perceive this as a weakness, but it is the furthermost thing from that. In a world so treacherous and unforgiving, humanitarianism of Dany’s stature is a true rarity and will prove to be nothing but an asset in the end when she mounts her rightful throne and sets up a dynasty based on restoring order, justice, and equality. The beauty reflected in Dany’s unwillingness to bend to the oppressive will of the system is that she is built for a greater world; one in particular that is advanced and does not see reason to divide humankind by gender, skin color, class. And she has the influence, the drive, the passion, and the incentive to bring that world to fruition one conquered nation at a time. In some way, most everyone has a little bit of the Khaleesi in them whether that be in respect to having a deeply-ingrained moral code, a strong set of ethics, empathy, passion, a sense of justice, propensity for emotional vulnerability, or a past plagued with hardship and adversity. There are multiple facets of Dany’s personality that make it easy to immerse oneself into her. She is just one of those characters that you are able to empathize and connect with on an emotional level right from the start because she has experienced all sides of the spectrum of life experience. She has known the pain of abuse and degradation, the loss of a loved one, and the loss of a life she carried inside of her for nine months, but she also has experienced the elation of being respected and revered, of inspiring and uniting thousands, of falling in love, and mothering children. (yes, her dragons ARE her children) She has been through more than most people experience in a lifetime and this enables most people to relate to her on some level, if only figuratively. Especially because she is somewhat of an open book. Her psychology is straightforwardly illustrated with lucid clarity revealing an earnest, at times even guileless transparence. She feels wholly and intensely, she doesn’t hesitate to act on emotional whims, she’s a dreamer and a fantasist; however, she’s also pragmatic and a realist, she’s known pain as she’s known joy, she’s heavily flawed, and she’s paradoxically, infallibly human. It sounds crazy to think that this ethereal all-powerful ruler with an enormous army and three fire-breathing dragons in her arsenal can be identified with when at face value, she’s a majestic queen far beyond the reach of us mere mortals; however, past her queenly status, her army, and her dragons, she is just a girl. Although she is undoubtedly matured beyond her years, her true age often shows through in her impulsive actions and off-handed choices. I love this about Dany because it serves to remind that she’s still just a young girl and one that was forced to grow up way too fast. And so although she has a goal and a plan based in logic all laid out, logic is not actually her strongest point at all. The girl is utterly governed by her heart. This can be seen as both a strength and a weakness as her uncontrolled emotions often times override her better judgment completely culminating in total self-sabotage (see her Mereen arc), but her heartfelt fervor is what inspires others’ confidence in her and their will to follow her in the first place, has gotten her out of predicaments in the past, and assures that she will be remembered for many years long past her reign, all of which is one of many reasons that I love Dany so fucking much. She owns her weaknesses and makes them work in her favour. She makes foolish, reckless choices, but she inspires people’s love and loyalty in the process. I see Dany shit on by the fandom frequently for her shows of vulnerability, but I think it is her greatest asset. Her heart got her to where she is now and her heart will take her to the iron throne. No way no how Dany will mount the throne by means of calculative prowess. Everything she has done so far in her pursuit of the iron throne has been completely against the book and has taken her far. I honestly cannot fathom how some people actually believe Dany will never make it to Westeros because hello – as she herself once said, a fortnight ago she did not have an army, a year ago, she did not have her dragons. Playing the game of thrones by the book did not procure her those things. She will rule her way and she will do it not like a queen, but a khaleesi.